AIRBUS must 'act fast' to slash jobs as it confronts the sharpest downturn in the aviation industry, says CEO Guillaume Faury in a memo to senior managers, reports Bloomberg

AIRBUS must 'act fast' to slash jobs as it confronts the sharpest downturn in the aviation industry, says CEO Guillaume Faury in a memo to senior managers, reports Bloomberg.

The Toulouse-based planemaker plans to secure union terms on cutbacks by early summer it was revealed in the video-conferenced meeting, people familiar with the matter said.

Airbus requires 'proactive, radical and rapid action' to stem cash outflows that the CEO has called a threat to the company's survival, the people said.

Mr Faury is preparing people for permanent job cuts after demand for new aircraft suddenly evaporated because of the coronavirus crisis. Fighting the disease has cut drastically into air travel, forcing airlines to park planes and defer deliveries as they seek bailouts to remain solvent.

Mr Faury dismissed a report that 10,000 jobs were at stake as speculation, though he didn't give an alternative figure, the person said. The company has about 134,000 employees worldwide.

He said he doesn't expect an aerospace recovery until 2023, with the market for wide-body planes typically used for long-distance routes of particular concern.

'The prospect of job losses across the aerospace industry has been rumbling around now for at least a month,' said Sandy Morris, an analyst at Jefferies. 'Aircraft deliveries cannot come down by 35 per cent without there being consequences.'